Hi Kristi -- Thanks for your question. While there is some truth to the notion that most side sleepers tend to need more softness and conformance than other types of sleepers, this has less to do with whether their mattress is a tight top, pillow top, or even unquilted -- the differences of which are largely aesthetic -- and everything to do with what types of materials happen to be in the mattress and what conformance and pressure-relieving characteristics they offer.

This means that the answer to your question is that plenty of side sleepers can get proper spinal alignment and pressure relief on a tight top mattress. So, if you found a mattress that you feel gives you proper spinal alignment and adequate pressure relief, I wouldn't second guess yourself -- particularly if that mattress is a plush tight top (vs a firm tight top).

As an aside, there are very, very few other websites that have credible independent expertise about mattresses. So there is also a decent chance that whatever other websites you were on were not to be trusted in the first place.

I hope that's helpful.